S E C ( 1 0 1 ) 8 U. S . C. 1 1 0 1 ( a ) ( 4 2 ) T H E T E R M R E F U G E E

M E A N S ( A ) A N Y P E R S O N W H O I S O U T S I D E A N Y

C O U N T RY O F S U C H P E R S O N ’ S N AT I O N A L I T Y O R . I N

T H E C A S E O F A P E R S O N H AV I N G N O N AT I O N A L I T Y

I S O U T S I D E A N Y C O U N T RY I N W H I C H S U C H P E R S O N

L A S T H A B I T U A L LY R E S I D E D . A N D W H O I S U N A B L E

O R U N W I L L I N G TO R E T U R N TO . A N D I S U N A B L E O R

U N W I L L I N G T O AVA I L H I M S E L F O R H E R S E L F O F

T H E P R O T E C T I O N O F . T H AT C O U N T R Y B E C A U S E

O F P E R S E C U T I O N O R A O F

P E R S E C U T I O N O N A C C O U N T O F R A C E . R E L I G I O N

N AT I O N A L I T Y . M E M B E R S H I P I N A P A R T I C U L A R

S O C I A L G R O U P . O R P O L I T I C A L O P I N I O N . O R ( B ) I N

a film by S H A R I R O B E R T S O N / M I C H A E L C A M E R I N I

facilitators guide

Television Race Initiative (TRI)

2601 Mariposa Street, San Francisco, CA 94110

Phone: (415) 553–2841 / e-mail: tvrace@pov.org

www.pbs.org/pov/tvraceinitiative

Well-Founded Fear is a featured program of the Television Race

Initiative (a project of P.O.V. /American Documentary, Inc.), a multi-

year effort in which diverse, character-driven, high-profile television

broadcasts create a spine for sustained community dialogue and

problem-solving around the issue of race relations. In partnership with

national and community-based organizations, TRI uses story-telling –

initially in the form of several public television broadcasts – to “break

the ice” and encourage essential conversations that lead to construc-

tive action.

P.O.V. /American Documentary, Inc.

220 West 19th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10011

Phone: (212) 989 –8121 / e-mail: connect@pov.org

www.pbs.org/pov

Well-Founded Fear had its national broadcast premiere on June 5,

2000, on PBS’ acclaimed showcase for independent non-fiction film,

P.O.V. (a cinematic term for “point of view”). A laboratory for tele-

vision’s potential, P.O.V. amplifies broadcasts by pioneering media

innovation, interaction, and impact through a wide range of energetic

broadcast-related activities including, Talking Back: Video and Digital

Letters to P.O.V., High Impact Television ( H ITV ) and P.O.V. Interactive.

O B T A I N I N G C O P I E S O F T H E F I L M :

Beginning May 1st, 2000, VHS copies of Well-Founded Fear may

be ordered from www.wellfoundedfear.org or by calling (212) 594–2522.

Covertext: excerpt from the law that defines

who deserves political asylum

cover design: Level Design, NYC

WELL-FOUNDED FEAR

2

As filmmakers, we are really happy about this beautiful guide — somegreat people put it together, and we think it contains strong and useful material tohelp viewers reflect on the concept of political asylum more deeply. We hope thatboth the film and this guide will provoke argument, disagreement, discussion, newideas and insights. And we hope the experience is meaningful to you, wherever itwas that you began. The ideal of asylum matters a lot, we think, to who we are asAmericans. That in a nutshell is our POV.

But a film isn’t just about its subject. It is always, also, about “seeing” in itssimplest meaning. We wanted to make a film that asks the viewer to watch closely,to pay attention to details, to notice the things that people say. In real life, everymoment is full of meanings (some of them contradictory), possible interpretations,and things that on the surface don’t really make sense. In film, as in real life, thewords matter and so does the color of the walls. A good movie, we think, helps younotice all that in a new way.

This film introduces you to people who must draw on their own moral compasses ina difficult situation. We hope you will find that you too have to reflect on yourown compass as you find your way through Well-Founded Fear and thediscussions to follow. In the end, your experience is a test not just of the film.

In the end, we bring the movie. You bring yourself.

With our thanks and best wishes to you all,

Shari Robertson and Michael Camerini

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Major funding for the Television Race Initiative (TRI) has beenprovided by the Ford Foundation with additional funding from theJohn D. and Catherine T. MacArthurFoundation, the Surdna Foundationand the James Irvine Foundation (San Francisco Bay Area).

Television Race Initiative Staff

Yvette Martinez, Project Director

Anisha Narasimhan, Project Coordinator

Missy Longshore, Project Assistant

Elaine Shen, Director of Training

Ellen Schneider, Executive Director

Facilitators Guide

Writer: Dr. Faith Rogow, Insighters Educational Consulting

Editor: Marjorie Beggs,San Francisco Study Center

Layout (inside pages): Lenny Limjoco, S.F. Study Center

Design (front and back cover):Level Design, NYC

Thanks to Those Who Reviewed This Guide

Michael Camerini, Well-Founded Fear

Bill Hing, Professor of Law, University of California at Davis

David Martin, Professor of Law,University of Virginia

Cara Mertes, Executive Producer,P.O.V.

Suvasini Patel, Director, High Impact Television, P.O.V.

Shari Robertson, Well-Founded Fear

Patricia St. Onge, Director,Graduate Theological UnionCooperative Summer Session

Jack Weinstein, Facing History and Ourselves

Additional ThanksThe P.O.V. StaffThe Epidavros Staff Amnesty International, U.S.A.

Copyright © 2000 American Documentary, Inc.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Filmmakers Shari Robertson and Michael Camerini

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History Before World War I, the United States made no distinction between refugees and immigrants,

and most newcomers were processed through centers such as Ellis Island in New York or Angel Island

in San Francisco Bay. Such centers no longer exist, and immigration currently is limited to close relatives —

parents, children, spouses, siblings — or people with certain job skills. For those without

such ties or skills, asylum may be the only way to obtain legal, long-term residency in

America. Some people believe that immigration restrictions have led to an increase

in fraudulent claims for asylum.

Beginning the year before the end of World War I, the United States enacted a

series of laws (in 1917, 1921, 1924) that restricted immigration. Fueled by prejudice

against people of color and non-Protestant Christians, as well as fear of communism

and poverty, those laws prohibited immigration or created quotas and ceilings on the

number of immigrants from selected parts of the world.

During World War II, the United States and other nations made little effort to

resettle people threatened by Nazi Germany. In 1939, while war raged in Europe but

before America had

officially entered

as a combatant,

the United States

refused entry to

the St. Louis, a ship

carrying Jewish

refugees. The ship

was forced to return

to Europe, where

many of its refugee passengers were

murdered in concentration camps.

The plight of the refugees in the

aftermath of Nazi atrocities had a

profound influence on United Nations

and U.S. immigrant, refugee, human

rights and asylum policies.

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Well-Founded Fear is an evocative documentary about

what goes on behind the electronic doors of the asylum office at the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization

Service (INS). On this dramatic, real-life stage, American ideals about human rights collide with the nearly

impossible task of trying to learn the truth from asylum-seekers. Well-Founded Fear challenges us as viewers

to think about whether government institutions reflect our political beliefs, including our level of

commitment to protecting individuals from persecution. Getting to know the people behind the institutions

also challenges us to evaluate how our beliefs, biases and experiences influence our ability to judge the

credibility of others.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

KEY DEFINITIONS

refugee — a person wholeaves his or her countryof origin because of awell-founded fear ofpersecution forreasons of race,religion, nationality,membership in aparticular socialgroup or politicalopinion.

political asylum — legalpermission to live in acountry given by itsgovernment to peoplefleeing danger or perse-cution in their originalhomelands.

immigrate — to come intoa region or country whereone is not a native.

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Farida, asylum applicant from Algeria.

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1948 U.N. Universal Declaration of Human Rightsdeclared that “everyone has the right to seek and to

enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.”

1948 U.S. Displaced Persons Act allowed 100,000

people displaced in World War II to enter America

(later amended to 400,000), but national origin

quotas and other restrictions kept out many people

who had been targeted for annihilation by the Nazis.

1950 For the first time, America adopted a legal

provision to allow people at risk of persecution to

remain in this country, the precursor of today’s

asylum provision.

1951 In the proceedings of the U.N. ConventionRelating to the Status of Refugees, a refugee was

defined for the first time as a person with a “well-

founded fear of persecution.” The convention gave

the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees the

power to aid and protect refugees. The United

States was not a signatory to this convention, but it

did sign on in 1968 when the protocol was updated.

1952 U.S. McCarren-Walter Immigration andNationality Act reaffirmed the national origins

quota system while allowing Asian nations small

quotas for the first time.

1953 U.S. Refugee Relief Act and other acts in the

1950s overrode national origin quotas for refugees

escaping from communist countries. Until the end

of the Cold War, the United States generally re-

mained open to anyone defecting from a communist

nation. Those admitted under this policy included

340,000 Cubans and 90,000 Soviet Jews.

1965 U.S. Immigration Act ended national origin

quotas for immigrants and refugees and replaced

them with ceilings for the

Eastern and Western

hemispheres, with top

priority given to those

with special skills or family

already in America. The

act was amended in 1978

to provide a single,

worldwide ceiling for

immigrants.

1978 In the aftermath of the Vietnam War, the

United States accepted 335,000 Indochinese

refugees, most of whom had worked for or sup-

ported the U.S. government during the war and

were in danger under communist rule. Despite this

policy, war refugees from Indochina continued to

flee the region, often on rickety boats. Neighboring

countries turned away these “boat people,” but

President Carter ordered all ships under U.S.

registry in the vicinity to pick up the refugees

and promised to resettle them in America.

1980 U.S. Refugee Act of 1980 defined a refugee

as a person outside his or her country of origin

“unable or unwilling to avail himself or herself of the

protection of that country because of a well-founded

fear of persecution on account of race, religion,

nationality, membership in a particular social group,

or political opinion.” The policy distinguishes be-

tween “political refugees” who are eligible for asylum

and “economic refugees” who are not eligible.

Also in 1980, America admitted 125,000 Cuban

refugees as part of the Mariel Boatlift Operation.

1990 U.S. Immigration Act of 1990 gave “tempo-

rary protective status” (18 months without deporta-

tion) to individuals fleeing emergency situations. For

the first time, the INS also created a special Asylum

Corps, officers specially trained in human rights

issues to review political asylum cases.

1996 U.S. Illegal Immigration Reform and ImmigrantResponsibility Act required people entering the

United States without documents to demonstrate

a “credible fear” of persecution at the border

before they may apply for asylum.Those who cannot

demonstrate such a fear may not apply; they and all

those whose asylum applications are rejected face

an expedited removal, despite the fact that being

detained in a jail makes gathering documentation

difficult. Application for asylum also must be filed

within one year of the alien’s arrival — the first time

a filing deadline was imposed. The act also redefined

refugees to include people who have been forced

to abort a pregnancy, undergo involuntary

sterilization, or who have been persecuted for

resisting coercive population-control programs.

Historical Dates

Information adapted from David M. Donahue and Nancy Flowers, The Uprooted: Refugees and the United States.Amnesty International and Hunter House Publishers, 1995.

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Each asylum application filerepresents someone’s life.

1948

1948

1950

1951

1952

1953

1965

1996

1990

1980

1976

In many groups, the facilitator can encourage productive discussion of Well-Founded Fear by simply opening with a general question: “What is the film about?” or “What do you think

you’ll remember about the film a week from now? A month from now? A year from now?” The group’s

comments and concerns will determine the agenda of the ensuing dialogue; the facilitator’s primary role will

be to keep things flowing and ensure that everyone is heard.

Another important role for the facilitator is to protect group members who may be vulnerable, such as

refugees who have experienced trauma or those still involved in legal proceedings. At the beginning of your

event, help your group establish ground rules that ensure everyone’s safety. These may include agreeing to

confidentiality and reminding people to use respectful language. You may need to do some prior planning to

provide a safe environment, perhaps arranging for translators or making sure that people with conflicting

legal interests don’t attend the same event.

It’s always helpful to prepare for your event by identifying your community’s

refugee groups, the countries they came from and their reasons for leaving

home. It’s also important to have on hand accurate information about general

U.S. asylum and human rights policies and where those in need can get help

(see Program Partners, page 11 of this guide).

Finally, to combat the “compassion fatigue” that can sometimes come from

seeing too many media stories about people in need, plan to end your event by

directing the group toward action. If the suggestions listed at the end of this guide

don’t meet your group’s needs, spend some time before the session ends

brainstorming about next steps.

The following sections offer questions and issues you might use to frame

your discussion. “In Their Shoes” concentrates on sharing personal stories and

establishing empathy with the people on screen. “Judging Credibility” asks

participants to examine the factors that influence their ability to judge others

fairly. “Human Rights and Public Policy” looks at beliefs about democratic ideals,

responsibility and human rights. Facilitators are not expected to have their

groups address every question. Rather, choose the questions that best meet

the needs and interests of your audience.

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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

STATISTICS

• The current estimated popula-tion of the United States is 274million (U.S. Census Web site:www.census.gov).

• There are an estimated 14 to 21million refugees worldwide. In1999, the United States approved13,220 applications for asylumand denied or referred 21,403applications. As of September30, 1999, 341,622 asylumcases were pending. There is nolimit on the number of peoplewho can be granted politicalasylum (U.S. Dept. of Justice,INS, tabulated by the U.S.Committee for Refugees).

• Most refugees’ first choice is toreturn home when conditionsbecome safe (The Uprooted).

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Huang Xiang, from China,waits for his INS interview with his pro bono attorney,Jennifer Schantz.

In Their Shoes • Imagine what it would be like to seek asylum. How would you feel talking about embarrassing, painful

or terrifying moments — moments you had tried to erase from your mind? How would it feel to have a

physician examine your physical wounds? Would you have acted differently from the people you saw

in the film?

You may want to read aloud this passage from the filmmakers:

“Imagine that your life has fallen apart — something terrible has happened and you’ve lost

every material possession, you’ve been tortured or seriously hurt, or maybe you’ve gotten out

just in time. You’ve said good-bye to the people you love and now you find yourself faced with

the barest possibility of a new start, a glimmer of hope that you can begin a new life in a

strange new place in relative safety. Your papers have been submitted, your file is being

processed, and now here is your chance. You will enter a small, fluorescent-lit office where

you will have one hour to tell your story to a neutral bureaucrat. Two weeks later you will

return to pick up a paper. This page will tell you your fate.”

• Imagine what it would be like to be an INS asylum officer who has the fate of others in his or her hands

daily. Would you have acted differently from the people you saw in the film? The facilitator may want to

read aloud this passage, written by the filmmakers:

“You’re an American citizen; you have a

good, steady job. You come to work every

morning and you have no idea who you’ll

meet, because a computer assigns cases at

random. You walk out into the waiting room

and call someone’s name — a name from any

one of a hundred countries. Each person

comes to tell you a story. Sometimes a lawyer

or translator is there. You have listened to

blood-curdling details, you have seen a lot of

confusion, and you have heard many lies. In

the afternoon you have an additional 90

minutes to research and to write up a defense

of your decision. Your job is to convince your

supervisor that each person deserves one of

two things — to be invited to stay here in

safety or to be deported. There is no

recommendation in between.”

• Have you ever had to prove a story or explain a complicated situation to someone who doubted you?

How did it feel? What did you do?

• Have you ever been in a position to judge someone’s credibility? What was the potential impact of your

decision? How did it feel to be put in that position? What did you do?

• In a poem, the Chinese dissident Huang Xiang asks: “Who am I?” If you had to try to answer that question

in five minutes or less for a stranger, what would you say? Can someone who doesn’t really know you

judge you fairly? In the asylum process, would it be practical or desirable for officers to take the time

to get to know applicants, or should officers focus on assessing the credibility of specific stories of

persecution?

• How do the applicants’ stories in Well-Founded Fear compare with your family’s migration stories?

Were the people in your family immigrants? Refugees? Slaves? Indigenous?

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Asylum applicant Gladys felt threatened because of familymembers’ political activity.

Judging Credibility • In the film, which applicants seemed credible to you and why? In which cases did you agree with the

asylum officer’s judgment and in which did you disagree? Were there instances in which you would have

liked the officer to ask more questions? If so, what questions would you have asked? If you were an asylum

officer, how would you improve your chances of making an accurate evaluation in each case?

• How can you tell whether

someone is telling the truth? List

what you look for and compare

your list with others in the room.

Besides consistency — for

example, the story during the

interview matching the story on

the written application — how do

the following factors influence

your perception of credibility?

Race, ethnicity or religion In

addition to our own prejudices,

how are our views influenced by

the prejudices of our family and

society?

Gender Do you expect different

kinds of behavior from men and

women?

Body language Consider that

some body language, such as eye contact, means different things in different cultures.

Expression of emotion What behaviors do you expect to see only in private? How does it feel to be

with someone who is crying or embarrassed?

Education level How might this influence how well-organized or well-spoken a person is?

Speaking ability Are you persuaded solely by content or does eloquence play a role?

English fluency How does fluency relate to comprehensibility?

Translation How do you know if a translation is accurate or complete?

Attire How do you determine what kind of clothing is appropriate for a given situation? Do all cultures

share values about appropriate clothing? Is it hard to imagine someone in a new suit with a fresh haircut

being tortured and starved in a jail cell?

Age Do you assume children are innocent? Do you associate old age with wisdom?

Media portrayals How does what we see on TV influence our perception of groups with which we

have little or no direct contact?

Personal prior knowledge Can you make better judgments when you’re familiar with someone’s

background? What is the effect of hearing the same story multiple times or having been lied to in

the past?

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MICHAEL CAMERINIAsylum officer Gerald.

Human Rights and Public Policy • Compare the following expressions of American ideals with the government’s actual human rights

policies and practices. Did the things you saw in Well-Founded Fear reflect the ideals expressed in these

quotes? Did they reflect your ideals and beliefs about democracy? What historical circumstances have

changed since these quotes were first written? Do they still apply? Should they still apply?

“Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.”

— Excerpt from “The New Colossus” by

Emma Lazarus, 1883, inscribed on the base of the Statue of Liberty

The United States should forever be “an asylum to the oppressed and needy of the earth.”

— George Washington, late 1700s

• How do we choose who should be granted asylum? Which of the following factors are important to

consider? Are some more important than others? If so, which ones would you weight the most and why?

✧ The number of refugees worldwide.

✧ The number of refugees for which the United States feels a special responsibility because it

contributed to the refugee problem.

✧ The number of refugees for which the United States feels a special responsibility because of its

historical connections to the refugees’ homeland.

✧ The number of refugees who will be accepted by other countries.

✧ A refugee’s wealth or poverty.

✧ A refugee’s educational background and skills.

✧ A refugee’s ability to speak English.

✧ The overall health of the U.S. economy.

✧ The success of past refugees in adjusting to American life.

✧ A refugee’s race, religion or ethnicity.

✧ A refugee’s sexual orientation.

✧ A refugee’s age or gender.

✧ A refugee’s family connections in the United States.

✧ A refugee’s political beliefs, such as belief in democracy, communism, anarchism or socialism.

✧ A refugee’s belief in capitalism.

✧ A refugee’s criminal record in his or her country of origin.

✧ The degree to which a refugee has suffered.

✧ The degree to which a refugee influenced, perpetrated

or was simply the victim of circumstances that led him

or her to leave his or her country of origin.

Adapted from The Uprooted.

• How would you define “well-founded fear,” the kind of

fear needed to qualify for asylum under existing law (see

definition of “refugee,” which lists the five grounds for

possible persecution)? What creates fear in a community?

Would you grant asylum to applicants who were were not

victims of violence themselves but were afraid because

they witnessed violence to family or group members?

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Asylum supervisor Larry.

• How does your definition of “persecution” compare

to how the law defines it (see definition of “refugee”)?

Does discrimination qualify as persecution? Under what

circumstances? What would the implications be of includ-

ing discrimination in the government’s definition of

“persecution”?

• How do we distinguish between cultural or political

practices that we simply don’t like, or with which we

disagree, and those that are truly damaging or dangerous?

For example, should a woman who fears being forced to

undergo genital mutilation in her country of origin, where it

is a common custom, be granted asylum? How about a child

living under communism but who is not in any physical

danger? Should asylum be granted to a family that is being

threatened because, contrary to its government’s policy, it

wants to have more than one child? Can we or should we distinguish between human rights and other

rights — civil rights, women’s rights, parents’ rights, gay rights?

• Is it ever reasonable to expect people to stay in their home countries and work to end human rights

abuses rather than granting them asylum in the United States?

• If you or someone you loved were applying for asylum, which asylum officer in the film would you hope

to have review your case? Why? What characteristics would you hope all asylum officers would possess?

Were you satisfied with the fairness of randomly assigning cases to officers? Can you think of anything

that could make the process more fair? Is it possible or desirable to remove “human error” from the

process? How can experienced asylum officers do their job without becoming jaded or cynical?

• Investigate the historical details of the United States denying or granting asylum to groups of refugees

(the St. Louis, the Haitian and Vietnamese “boat people,” the Mariel Boatlift). How did these events

influence U.S. asylum policy? In the cases where refugees were granted asylum, how did the refugees

influence the communities in which they settled?

➔ Brainstorm a list of the people in your community who, in the course of their jobs, routinely judge others’credibility. Examples might include judges, police officers, parole officers, jury members, teachers,

youth workers, child care providers, employers, security guards, store clerks and bankers. What training

do these people receive that helps them judge credibility? Does their training address diversity issues?

Do the situations in which they work address language and translation issues? How might you improve

the training available to people in your community?

➔ Identify refugee groups in your community. What are their primary needs and how can you or your group

help meet those needs? Keep in mind that in addition to help with finances, housing, and employment or

training, refugees may benefit from help with such day-to-day tasks as homework, getting a library card

and meeting neighbors.

➔ Do a community assessment. What do refugees find when they come to your community? Are their lives

easy or difficult? Talk with local refugees to identify your community’s strengths and weaknesses, then

use the assessment to determine action steps.

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TAKING ACTION

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Ana Maria’s asylum claim was based onreligious persecution in Romania.

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➔ Examine your religion’s beliefs about refugees. Without eroding the separation of church and state,

how might your congregation, community or group act on your beliefs? The following passages may

be helpful:

“The stranger that sojourns with you shall be to you as the home-born among you, and you

shall love him as yourself; for you were once strangers in the land of Egypt.” (Leviticus 19:34)

“If one amongst the Pagans

Asks thee for asylum,

Grant it to him

So that he may hear the word

Of God; and then escort him

To where he can be secure.”

(The Koran 8.72)

“Our League is a Great Tree. It reaches high into the sky so that all peoples will see and know

of it. The Eagle watches from its top as our guardian bird. The Tree has four white roots, White

Roots of Peace that go to the four winds. If any man or any nation shall show a desire to trace

these roots to their source and obey the Law of the Great Peace, they shall be made welcome

to take shelter beneath this tree.”

(From New Voices from the Longhouse: Anthology of Contemporary Iroquiois Writing. Joseph Bruchae, Editor. 1989)

➔ Provide an opportunity for a refugee or someone who works with refugees to tell their story publicly.Include as part of your event an audience survey on the myths and facts about refugees and asylum.

What misconceptions did people have? Where might those ideas have originated? Distribute

handouts summarizing accurate information.

➔ Find out whether your school district curriculum includes information on human rights. If not, work with

teachers and school officials to see how such information might be integrated.

➔ Review legislation relating to asylum and human rights. Do existing laws and policies reflect your beliefs?

If you are a citizen, what might you do to help your government better represent your views?

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The Statue of Liberty remains a potent symbol of freedom

in the United States.

These organizations can be excellent resources and may have affiliates in your community.

Amnesty International USA World Affairs CouncilNational Refugee Office World Affairs Council of Northern California500 Sansome Street, Suite 615 312 Sutter Street, Suite 200San Francisco, CA 94111 San Francisco, CA 94108(415) 291-0601 (415) 293-4600www.aiusa.org www.wacsf.org

Center for Victims of Torture Church World Service717 East River Road Immigration and Refugee ProgramMinneapolis, MN 55455 475 Riverside Drive, Room 658(612) 626-1400 New York, NY 10115www.cvt.org (212) 870-3153

www.churchworldservice.org

Also, there are many useful Web sites about political asylum issues, such as www.immigrationforum.org,http://shusterman.com/toc-asyl.html, www.aila.org, and www.ins.usdoj.gov. The P.O.V. /Well-FoundedFear program Web site, www.pbs.org/pov/wellfoundedfear, contains more information on political asylumissues and community organizations.

For additional resources, please refer to Delve Deeper into Well-Founded Fear (a guide to books, Web sites and films) produced by Booklist, the review journal of the American Library Association.

11

Facing History and Ourselves www.facing.orgFacing History and Ourselves is a national educational and teacher training organization whose mission is toencourage students of diverse backgrounds in an examination of racism, prejudice, and anti-semitism in order to promote a more humane and informed citizenry.

National Conference for Community and Justice www.nccj.orgNCCJ is a human relations organization dedicated to fighting bias, bigotry and racism in America through advocacy, conflict resolution and education.

Association of American Colleges and Universities www.aacu-edu.orgAAC&U is a national association committed to making the aims of liberal learning a vigorous and constant influence on institutional purpose and educational practice in higher education.

YWCA of the USA www.ywca.orgYWCA of the USA is dedicated to the empowerment of women and girls and to the elimination of racism. The YWCA has historically implemented communitywide dialogues and initiatives on issues of racism.

WELL-FOUNDED FEAR PROGRAM PARTNERS

TELEVISION RACE INITIATIVE NATIONAL PARTNERS

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M E A N S ( A ) A N Y P E R S O N W H O I S O U T S I D E A N Y

C O U N T RY O F S U C H P E R S O N ’ S N AT I O N A L I T Y O R . I N

T H E C A S E O F A P E R S O N H AV I N G N O N AT I O N A L I T Y

I S O U T S I D E A N Y C O U N T RY I N W H I C H S U C H P E R S O N

L A S T H A B I T U A L LY R E S I D E D . A N D W H O I S U N A B L E

O R U N W I L L I N G TO R E T U R N TO . A N D I S U N A B L E O R

U N W I L L I N G T O AVA I L H I M S E L F O R H E R S E L F O F

T H E P R O T E C T I O N O F . T H AT C O U N T R Y B E C A U S E

O F P E R S E C U T I O N O R A O F

P E R S E C U T I O N O N A C C O U N T O F R A C E . R E L I G I O N

N AT I O N A L I T Y . M E M B E R S H I P I N A P A R T I C U L A R

S O C I A L G R O U P . O R P O L I T I C A L O P I N I O N . O R ( B ) I N

a film by S H A R I R O B E R T S O N / M I C H A E L C A M E R I N I

facilitators guide

Television Race Initiative (TRI)

2601 Mariposa Street, San Francisco, CA 94110

Phone: (415) 553–2841 / e-mail: tvrace@pov.org

www.pbs.org/pov/tvraceinitiative

Well-Founded Fear is a featured program of the Television Race

Initiative (a project of P.O.V. /American Documentary, Inc.), a multi-

year effort in which diverse, character-driven, high-profile television

broadcasts create a spine for sustained community dialogue and

problem-solving around the issue of race relations. In partnership with

national and community-based organizations, TRI uses story-telling –

initially in the form of several public television broadcasts – to “break

the ice” and encourage essential conversations that lead to construc-

tive action.

P.O.V. /American Documentary, Inc.

220 West 19th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10011

Phone: (212) 989 –8121 / e-mail: connect@pov.org

www.pbs.org/pov

Well-Founded Fear had its national broadcast premiere on June 5,

2000, on PBS’ acclaimed showcase for independent non-fiction film,

P.O.V. (a cinematic term for “point of view”). A laboratory for tele-

vision’s potential, P.O.V. amplifies broadcasts by pioneering media

innovation, interaction, and impact through a wide range of energetic

broadcast-related activities including, Talking Back: Video and Digital

Letters to P.O.V., High Impact Television ( H ITV ) and P.O.V. Interactive.

O B T A I N I N G C O P I E S O F T H E F I L M :

Beginning May 1st, 2000, VHS copies of Well-Founded Fear may

be ordered from www.wellfoundedfear.org or by calling (212) 594–2522.

Covertext: excerpt from the law that defines

who deserves political asylum

cover design: Level Design, NYC

WELL-FOUNDED FEAR